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Military spouse hands out real advice for working wives

Soldiers with care packages by Abby Hollingsworth, military spouse and SVP on the Environmental Social Governance team at Bank of America. She and BofA worked to send 2,000 packages to her husband's region in Afghanistan.(Photo: Abby Hollingsworth)

Eager to be the best military spouse ever, Abby Hollingsworth led an effort with Bank of America to send care packages to soldiers in her husband Robert's deployment region in Afghanistan.

He agreed to help as battle captain overseeing helicopters in the region, however, he realized he agreed to more than he could handle when he was greeted with a pallet of 2,000 care packages from his loving wife.

"I thought I was being the best wife ever for sending these care packages, but it was apparently a pain in the neck for him," she said laughing.

Hollingsworth is a military spouse; one of many unsung heroes of this country.

Hollingsworth, her husband and their one-year-old daughter are currently stationed at Fort Campbell, where she focuses on BofA’s charitable foundation and philanthropic efforts as senior vice president, program manager, for the Environmental Social Governance team.

This Friday, May 12 is Military Spouse Day, and Hollingsworth is sharing her experience and advice for today's military spouses.

She knows employment can be a major challenge for spouses and thanks her job for being supportive through her many moves and special projects, like the care packages, and has shared her advice for today's military spouses looking for careers.

Look for large national corporations — Large corporations are more likely to have offices in multiple states, and even multiple countries. This makes finding a job easier when moving.

Have flexible credentials — It's easier to find jobs in fields like nursing because of their flexible credentials. Hollingsworth also recommends teaching and business administration credentials to find work easily.

Rely on your network — Deployments are a part of military spouse life, and they can often find themselves alone. Hollingsworth said that finding a community of military spouses to lean on throughout deployments is a huge help. Networks can also direct each other to job openings.

Talk about your family's needs — Every family is different, Hollingsworth said, and there should be a constant dialogue about what each family needs, and how it can function with two working adults.

Be confident and independent — Military spouses need the confidence to have their own lives when their partner isn't there. "There are a lot of times your spouse is gone for training in another country... and they're so stressed they don't have the capacity to comfort you," she said. "You have to be strong."